NHL POWER RANKINGS

NHL Hockey Power Rankings

Week 9 Power Rankings

(Note: The Power Rankings will be based on a formula of points earned divided by the maximum amount of points possible [points/games played x 2]. In case of a tie, categories such as wins, goals against, goals for, power-play goals and power-play percentage will determine rankings.)

(.679) With the Penguins breathing down their necks in the Atlantic, the Flyers needed a good week in order to keep pace with their division rivals. Philly not only put an end to a three-game losing streak last week, the club also picked up four of a possible six points by winning two of three.

(.667) The Montreal Canadiens opened up the month of December by recording five points in their first three games of the month. Carey Price backstopped the Habs to two wins and one overtime loss in his three starts, which included a 27-save performance in a 5-1 win in New Jersey.

(.620) Once again, Tim Thomas was the Bruins' best player in a week. The veteran netminder helped Boston put an end to a losing streak by posting his NHL-leading fifth shutout. In all, Thomas only allowed three goals in regulation last week, helping the B's collect five of a possible six points.

(.620) By winning two of his three starts last week, Roberto Luongo helped the Canucks stay in the top 10 in the rankings for the second week in a row. Luongo turned aside 50 of the 52 shots he faced in Vancouver's two wins last week, including every shot he faced in a 3-0 win over Chicago on Dec. 3.

(.615) The Coyotes opened up December by putting an end to a two-game losing streak and wining two of their first three games of the month. In his two Week 9 starts, Ilya Bryzgalov helped Phoenix pick up three of the four points that were on the table by leading his team to a 3-0 win over Florida and a 2-1 shootout loss to Florida.

(.580) In the first week of December, the Blue Jackets picked up right where they left off in November  on the losing side of games. Columbus dropped all three of its games last week, extending its losing streak to five games heading into play this week. Before this stretch, the Jackets hadn't lost back-to-back games all season long.

(.574) The wins kept coming for Atlanta last week. The Thrashers won two of three last week, giving the club seven wins in their last eight games. In those contests, Dustin Byfuglien has done more than his share, notching 12 points  three in Week 9  off five goals and seven assists.

(.569) The Rangers won two of the four games they played in Week 9, but the two wins were nothing to brag about. Sandwiched between two 3-1 losses to Pittsburgh and Ottawa, the Blueshirts swept a home-and-home series from the NHL's worst club, the New York Islanders.

(.560) By losing two of the three games they played last week, the Sharks dropped out of the top half of the rankings. San Jose's only Week 9 win came Dec. 2 over the Senators in Dany Heatley's return to Ottawa since forcing a trade after the 2008-09 season.

(.552) The good news that came out of Week 9 for the Blackhawks was that the team won two of three when its top-three power play connected on seven of the 14 opportunities thrown its way. The bad news was losing another top-notch forward, Patrick Kane, to injury.

(.500) In a course of two weeks, the Wild have fallen eight places in the rankings  five last week and three this week  courtesy of Minny losing four in a row last week and seven of its last eight. But when a team goes 1-for-25 on the power play in its last eight tilts, there's nowhere to go but down.

(.464) To say that Ottawa was terrible on offense last week would be an understatement. The Senators only managed to score once in regulation in their three losses last week. Even in their win over the Rangers, the team's offense was AWOL, as Chris Kelly potted all his team's goals in the 3-1 road victory over New York.

(.462) The Oilers played their best week of hockey in Week 9. The club won four games in a row for the first time this season, which moved it up four places in the Power Rankings. In two of the wins, Nikolai Khabibulin was razor sharp, stopping 34 of the 35 shots fired at his cage.

(.440) The Panthers lost two of the three games they played last week, causing them to drop three places in the rankings. In the team's only win of the week, backup goalie Scott Clemmensen stopped a combined 40 shots in regulation and overtime and an additional three in the shootout to net the Cats a 2-1 win over Phoenix.

(.346) Marty Brodeur should take his time coming back from injury because the Devils are another Eastern Conference club that is going nowhere fast. Last week, the team lost both games it played, getting outscored 10-4 in the contests. The smell of a coaching change is in the winter air.

(.300) November wasn't kind to the Islanders, as the team dropped 10 of the 11 games they played. December looks like it's going to be the same deal for New York, as the team opened up the month with three straight losses. The Isles limp into Week 10 having only won once (1-6-3) in their last 10 games.

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